Spirit Animal

Tai-Da Vrikaurvan replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

I agree with you there connor. What I am trying to understand in my head is, if this manifestation is part of me why would it be an animal? why not just a reflection of myself? why not just a natural state of energy? I am not an animal and although I have a connection with them doesn't change the fact that I am human. Why would my energy be portraid of something so different to who I am.

Kol Drake replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

Consider -- say you are dreaming and you see a regular, normal person walk up to you. Your mind does it's 'thing' and makes judgments -- do I know this person, boy they are old/young/white/asian/a knockout girl/a hag/whatever. With the judging comes your response to what they are doing or saying... either paying attention or sloughing them off.

Now consider -- same scene but an eagle swoops down out of the sky and lands before you. It might even fly down and land on your shoulder. Boy, you ARE paying attention to that move... and only making judgments like, "shit, am I gonna die?" / the claws don't hurt as much as I thought they would, etc.

It is sometimes why you can 'dream' of a very familiar place and then open the door you know is there; step through and be in a totally different scene. Your mind is taking you out of the familiar to 'get your attention' for whatever reason... either you asked a question or have issues to address, etc.

How does a spirit guide/animal relate to the Force?

mmm... some say energy is mind/thought made manifest. Perhaps in the realm of 'dreams' / consciousness / all things aetheric and etheric... our thoughts DO produce a form of 'dream reality'. We can dream up whole landscapes... and wipe them out and start anew. Ride dragons and pet dinosaurs. If we take the definition that the Force is 'in everything' -- everything is connected to the Force -- then what we manifest in this 'dream realm' is as much part of the Force as the rock you stubbed your toe on or the air you breath.

Is a spirit 'just our own mind talking to us' or something more.
Noted this before. Many times, the guide/spirit is an aspect of 'us' -- sometimes showing us things we may already know but never acknowledged. BUT, there are times when 'stuff' is revealed which a person never knew of -- actions of others/family members far removed, incidents from another time/place, foreign languages, ancient histories, etc. More then just "maybe I picked that bit of fluff up channel surfing several years ago" kind of knowledge.

There are some who think some spirits are departed souls who are 'in training' / 'waiting to come back or move on'. Again, energy constructs/souls/memories -- the essences of 'who we are/were'. Some are pretty certain they are in contact with intelligences 'beyond human' (or more likely, of such a higher vibrational level that interacting with them is 'weird') -- meaning they might not react with emotions and such 'like a human' but more .... mmm... how to say, 'alien' to our understanding?

Ya, all hand wavy. Perhaps others can fill in the blanks and explain the mysteries.

Memnoich replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

To me it's similar to what Kol said. As Jax said there is a difference between animal and spirit guides, while there is no reason an animal guide can't be a human or visa versa, the difference is also the connection to the Force, at least in my opinion. A spirit guide is usually a departed soul or member of your soul cluster, who's goal is to help nudge you when you need it, to stay on your path an achieve your goal. Whereas the animal guide is more of the force made manifest to help with your path when you need it, in most cases not so much for knowledge as it is for support or to give you what you need when you need it. The animal that appears is that which your subconscious feels is what will help you make that next step or overcome that obstacle.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - all typos are considered intentional and full of meaningless harassment.

.oO Memnoich Oo."Do or do not, there is no try" ~Yoda
"Shared pain is lessened, shared joy increased." ~Spider Robinson

Johannes (Yoshio) replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

First of all many thanks to all the contributions and especially to Kol Drake’s input – which I will reread later again when I can be more focused.
So far what makes sense for me is the point that we all are likely to experience those things (slightly) different due to our different back grounds and experiences. Furthermore it makes sense for me that there are different ‘forms’ for different ‘tasks’ or questions.

Anyway, hereafter I will share with whomever is willing to read it what I found during my internet ‘research’ but be warned that I haven’t read it yet myself and therefore I have no idea if it is any good!?

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Kol Drake replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

Great references Yoshio!

The Guardian Spirits papers would make a pretty good permanent reference here.

And, while I am not hyper Judeo-Christian leaning, it has some good points. Heck, if you replaced 'guardian angel' with spirit guide and ignored the more J-C based quotes and references, it's a fair 'how to' guide for raising energy, meditation and contacting helpers... although I think the GS papers do it in more detail (and with pictures!).

Johannes (Yoshio) replied the topic: Re:Spirit Animal

Ahh, okay and many thanks for having a look into them.
As I wrote, the idea with the Guardian Angles derived from what my Feng Shui colleague told me that he said that those are normally easier to contact than Spirit Guides or other ‘Higher Entities’. Me too I’m not deep into Angles and such but as You, Kol Drake, wrote, substitute them any other form of a Spirit Guide, I guess, it would do the job for me.

Anyway, I now read through your contribution and found it quite interesting to read. I could find much in what You have posted what I already read sometime and somewhere in the past. I guess what I no need to do is exactly that, walking the walk and not only read about it.

Many thanks for your contributions as well as to all the others who joined in this topic.

Katie (StormyKat) replied the topic: Spirit Animal

I just sat down and did the meditation video here:
http://youtu.be/gCCTrTWnQJQ
This is something I have been trying to do for a long time, but never had a clear enough mind to do it. I was always thinking of what I wanted my spirit animal to be, or what I thought it was.

I got interrupted a quarter of the way through my first time, after having entered a deep, deep relaxation state. I then went back and started again. This time I did not get quite as deeply relaxed. When I got to the part of the video where she says "visualize your spirit animal coming through the sun's light towards you" I suddenly yelled "HORSE!" inside my head. I pictured all the horses I saw at a horse sanctuary in South Dakota. I remembered my childhood fascination with horses.

Horse was one of the first animals that came to my mind when actively thinking what my spirit animal might be. I have always felt drawn to horses, so it would make sense if the horse was my power/spirit animal. I am going to try the meditation again after some time has passed and will try to find some other information on guides to finding spirit animals.

I have a question for you all though. Can you have an animal that is constantly appearing in your life, that has shown it is drawn to you, that you find everywhere, and clearly has lessons to teach you without it being your spirit/power animal? I firmly believe that nature and animals have much to teach us, and we can all learn from everything in the wild. However, everything I have been reading about spirit animals says to pay attention and see what animal you see everywhere, pay attention to how animals act towards you

My own personal experience has been limited with horses since I am a city girl. I have much experience with cats though, and from the time I was a few days old I have attracted cats. Pet cats, stray cats, random cats walking down the street. Everyone says I have a way with them. I understand them and can sense their energy in a way that I don't experience with other animals. Because I have a deep love for them I try to not "ask" for them to be my spirit animal...I can't help but wonder about my deep and persistent connection to the animals though.

Kol Drake replied the topic: Spirit Animal

Perhaps there is some dynamic between cats and horses -- so you can be 'visited' since you are a city girl? Figure there aren't tons of horses trotting up and down the local neighborhood. (Though, if you have mounted police -- maybe a visit to their stables?)

Cats
In Egypt, cats were always given special privileges and were treated like royalty. In Scandinavia the cat stood for fertility, and in India it is a symbol of childbirth. In ancient times it was believed that witches took the form of their cats at night.

Let's face it -- cats are fiercely independent. You can never own one: the feline allows you to take care of it and love it, but only on its terms. They come and go as they please, when they please. A feral cat as a totem can indicate the wild nature of your personality. A feral cat messenger could be signaling caution, reminding you to be wary of anyone who tries to come near you who you don't know very well. Colonial living, tribal hunting and gathering, communal responsibility, "it takes a village..."

As a 'power animal', Cat's medicine is independence, curiosity, many lives, cleverness, unpredictability, healing, the ability to fight when cornered, seeing the unseen, and protection. They also represents love and can assist us in meditation. So, if Cat is your Power Animal, then you have magic and mystery in your life. You are independent and a free thinker. You probably feel energized at night. You will stay with a person or situation until it bores you, and then you're gone. You have a great talent for organizing things.

Now, a Horse is a Horse of course, of course...
The horse shows up in almost every mythological writing, folklore, and reality. There is the mighty winged Pegasus, the eight-legged horse of the Norse god Odin, the stallions of the Hindu sun god, the stallions of Apollo, and so on. Many legends speak of the horse as being clairvoyant and able to perceive humans with magical powers. No single animal has given man the physical freedom of movement as the horse.

If you are drawn to Horse, you feel a power in your spirit that is sometimes difficult to control. Horse is a symbol of loyalty and devotion, of unquestioning love and faith in his master. Horse says that you love to travel, and have more than a touch of gypsy in your soul. Horse is also your warrior spirit - the brave fighter who brings you safety in your journeys, both physical and metaphysical.

Horse's medicine includes power, stamina, endurance, faithfulness, freedom to run free, control of the environment, awareness of power achieved with true cooperation, interspecies communication, expanding one's own potential abilities, friendship and cooperation, travel, astral travel, guardian of travelers, warns of possible danger, guide to overcoming obstacles.

Now another site says this of Horse --

Symbol of freedom and of the wind. No other animal has given Man the freedom of mobility like the horse. The horse gives the promise of speed and adventure. The horse is the symbol of true power and this power should not be used in a negative manner. Powerful and rebellious, hot blooded and hot headed, horse spirit has power within that is sometimes hard to control. Needing love and intimacy yet also feeling trapped by it. Leaving home early yet having a hard time belonging elsewhere. Very self-interested yet its work benefits others, the horse shows many contradictions in character.

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I've been accused of being a 'city boy' myself over the years but I do seem recall something about stables and cats -- how felines worked well with horses -- the cat keeping the vermin, rats, and other nasties away and the horse kind of the protective 'big brother' in the duo.

Perhaps all your feline overlords are staying close since you don't have the 'horse balance' in your life?

Kol Drake replied the topic: Spirit Animal

In The Seat of the Soul, Gary Zukav writes, "Behind every aspect of the health or illness of the body is the energy of the soul. It is the health of the soul that is the true purpose of the human experience." Our four-legged friends attune to the energy of the soul, and sometimes manifest physical illnesses that reflect the healing we need to undertake.

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John Dore, a college professor and therapist who lives in Tucson, AZ, does equine therapy with his horse Buddy. "The primary thing about horses," notes John, "Is that they are always in the present moment. They are not dominated by mental categories like we are. Thoughts don't interfere with their presence in the moment. So, that means they are in their feeling body all the time."

Horses can be incredible teachers about fear and overcoming fear. Fear is their primary emotion, so they know a lot about fear. "They are prey animals," continues Dore, "So they have a lot of fear about anything unusual happening in their environment unless they are trained and can trust a human to train them. Humans organize around being predators. Americans organizing around going to war in Iraq is one example. Horses can help humans be present in the moment, in their body. You have to be in your body around horses because of how big they are. You have to be ready to move, to be alert in a different way."

"If you allow it, horses will provide a space for you to be with your feelings. I believe horses are flooded with feelings a lot of the time. Feeling states are physiological. They arise in the body. They flood the body. I don't think horses have emotions. With humans, once there is a feeling, the mind comes in and starts to appropriate--to label, express and categorize what is felt. Horses tend to be in a feelingful state all the time. When a human is in the context of a horse, their opportunity and ability to go to their feeling state is heightened."

Horses can be good emotional mirrors for humans. If a person is authentic and comfortable in their being, the horse will be that way. In addition to being such good mirrors for working with fear, horses can also mirror back to humans other emotional states. If an angry person goes to a horse, the horse will get angry. If a sad person comes to a horse, the horse will be sad. Horses provide enormous sympathy. There are endless stories of grief in humans and going to a horse for comfort. Dore commented that even a wild stallion will stand with a human and the human can takes it's neck and cry on it.

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Horses and other animals can ultimately be our spiritual teachers. They can augment us, guide us and facilitate us. However, to be open to animals requires the civilized mind to be out of the way. Four-leggeds know heart much better than humans if not interfered with. The same is true for children. The key issue is interference. John Dore comments, "Civilization has been one big moment against the natural flow of the life force coming through."

"Horses can't make it in the way the world is constructed. They can't make it without free range. In the Southwest, there isn't enough grass for them to live on. They have become dependent on human beings." The same is true for cats and dogs. Feral cats and dogs have very difficult lives. The average feral cat lives three years on the streets. Compare this to the 13 - 20 year life cycle of pet cats in your household. Feral dogs fare less well than feral cats. They are truly in need of human companionship and care.

"I learned from a teacher that love is not an issue with horses," comments Dore. "What horses live with is respect. It's a code. They will respect you to varying degrees. The way you respect yourself, the deeper that is, the deeper respect you can give to the other being." In addition to being gregarious and fearful, horses, like many other species are also herd animals. They need to be together. They also need a leader.

"Horses can take over and dominate if they need to," says Dore. "In a herd there is a dominant stallion and usually a dominant mare. It comes down to respect. This mare knows the best places to go, so we follow her. If this stallion is the toughest guy in the crowd, we submit to him." Many four-leggeds organize their societies to look out for the needs of the whole. We humans have a lot to learn from our four-legged soul-mates if only we pay attention with open hearts and minds.